User Reviews

All Reviews by Shinobi558

Dead or Alive: Xtreme 2 - Xbox 360

Should have been called "Xtremely Addictive"

Hide the kids! The girls of Dead or Alive 4 are back once again, but instead of fighting, they're kicking back for some intense beach action. Pick one of the nine beautiful ladies to accompany for two virtual weeks. During this vacation time you can do all sorts of things: play some extreme beach volleyball, jetski race around the island, ride the terrifyingly fun waterslide, tug-o-war, hopping game, and of course, Butt Battle. If you happen to get sick of the many mini games, tackle the big draw of Vacation Mode; collect every last bikini for each girl. That's over three hundred bikinis! And if you're still not satisfied, take your volleyball and jetski skills online with Xboxlive. Play a ranked match, or a casual one. Play with a friend, or a complete stranger. The choice is yours. Overall, the graphics are amazing. Shadows and light run perfectly with the girls. The sound is great with a beach friendly soundtrack intact. The girls also can speak either English or Japanese, whichever you prefer. Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 is an addictive collection-based game that should not be over looked.

Pokemon LeafGreen - GBA

Ahh... the memories.

Doesn't it feel like it was just yesterday? Begging your pal to trade you his Vulpix for your Growlithe? Well get ready to relive those days! In Pokemon Leaf Green (or Fire Red). I recently picked up Leaf Green. Since Pokemon Red is one of my favorite games of all time, I just had to play it again. Re-releasing the classic game for GBA was the best idea for Nintendo. I'm having so much fun capturing and training my pokemon. The graphics are really good for a GBA game. Although I don't know why the pokemon are still pictures. I believe they moved in the Crystal Version, what happened to that? But the colorful and bright levels look beautiful on my GBA. Those crazy yells and growls are still intact also. Pikachu and pals sound exactly the same from Red and Blue. That can be a good thing, or a bad thing. The town tunes are revamped with guitars, banjos, flutes, and more. Overall, this is one of the best GBA games I have ever played. Right up there with Metroid Zero Mission and Yoshi's Island. I suggest it to any Gameboy Advance owner.

Xbox 360 - Xbox 360

Shinobi's thoughts

As I scrolled through the abysmal reviews of the 360 by Xbots and Sony Fanboys, I've decided to review the 360 myself. When you turn on the system, you are greeted with 4 menus. Choose between Xboxlive, Games, Media Player, and System settings. The menus are pretty easy to understand. You can download lots of stuff in the XBL Arcade, you can play demos in the Games menu, listen to music in the media section, and change settings in the settings menu. There's also that big guide button smacked in the middle of the controller. Use that to bring up your friends list, send messages, play music, and more. It's definatly helpful, but it can sometimes freeze your game. The controller itself is very nice. The black and white buttons are gone, replaced by very comfortable bumper buttons. I must say, the D- Pad is horrible for fighting games. I don't know what Microsoft was thinking. The A,B,X, and Y buttons are better than the old Xbox's. They don't dig into your finger like the controller S's, and they aren't analog anymore. The games are good too. I won't call this the best launch line up in the world, but there are some great games. Call of Duty 2, Dead or Alive 4, and Project Gotham Racing 3 are all great. The future of games doesn't look bleak either. Resident Evil 5, Gears of War, and Full Auto all are looking awesome. The fact that there are two different systems is rediculous. No one in their right mind would buy a core system, they aren't even available in Japan. Nice move MS. I was unfortunate to get stuck with a Core System (after waiting overnight for one). Luckily I found a HDD, which are very hard to find. Stores seem to be getting more 360s in stock, but the whole shortage of systems is unforgiveable. I would definatly reccomend the 360 to any non casual gamer. The graphics are great, there's some backwards compatibility (some!), and the online elements are very cool. So if you're willing to pay $400 and you have high speed internet, go for it.

Soul Calibur III - PS2

Namco... it's not 1999 anymore

Ahh Soul Calibur 2, that was a fun game. Three different guest stars, three different systems, fun new characters, nice graphics and sound, and so on. But Soul Calibur 2, this is not. It's been completely downgraded from SC2. It's only on one system, there's no new guest stars, the voices put me to sleep, and the graphics are mediocre. The fighting engine is still intact. Fighters have new moves, there's new fighters, and they're all pretty balanced. I didn't like some of the new moves/replacements. If you love to read, then you'll love the storymode. It's the most boring single player experience I have ever encountered. There is almost no acting what so ever. Only reading. Games from 2005 should have good voice acting and sound effects. This sounds like an N64 game. Speaking of games from 2005... there's a little thing called online play. Especially for a fighting game. Offline fighting games in 2005 is unacceptable. The character creation is ok, but not very deep. There's also Chronicles of the Sword mode. A total snooze fest. If you are a hard core Soul Calibur fan, you will be greatly dissapointed. Graphics 4.5, Sound 3.0, Controls 4.0, Funfactor 3.5

Dead or Alive 4 - Xbox 360

It's finally here!

I've been waiting since May to play DOA4, and I finally have. I must say it's the greatest fighting game I've ever played. The difficulty in single player mode is much higher now, and countering has become more difficult (and weaker) to pull off. Every fighter has new moves and grabs, and some are missing old ones. The story mode is incredibly deep, especially for a fan of DOA like myself. The game revolves around Helena, a young French woman who's inherited the the DOATEC organization. It used to be owned by her late father. She wants nothing to do with DOATEC, as it is evil. She has no choice but to destroy it. Her story is very sad, and actually sparked a few tears in my eyes. Of course, other fighters have story's as well. Some are very hilarious. The online game is similar of Dead or Alive Ultimate. You join a room, and watch people duke it out, and wait for your turn. This time however, you can create little avatars to walk around with in the lobby. There's also an online shop (Zack's Shop) that lets you purchase outfits for your avatar, as well as new ones for your fighter. You gain money by beating people in online matches. Overall, if you like fighting games (and you have an Xbox 360) you should definatly check out DOA4. DOA veterans will also love it. The new fighters; Kokoro, Eliot, and La Mariposa (as well as a secret female Spartan from Halo) are all fun to learn and use. Of course, old favorites like Kasumi, Ryu Hayabusa, Tina, and Ayane make comebacks too. So be sure to look out for my new favorite fighting game, Dead or Alive 4!